Addressing-machine.



Patented May 30, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEE"'I A TTORNIJ x35 A. HORSWELL.

ADDRESSING MACHINE.

APPLICATION HLED IULY24 1911.

Patented May 30, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET '2.

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A. HORSWELL.

ADDRESSING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 24. I911.

Patented May 30,1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3- Mia-1M; W

A TTORNE YS STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT HOBSWELL, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE AUTOMATIC ADDRESSING MACHINE COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

ADDRESSING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 30, 1916.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT HORSWELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Addressing- Machines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to printing machines of the type known as addressing Inachines, also printing and addressing machines, which are used for printing addresses on envelops, newspaper wrappers, postal cards, etc., from a series ofseparate and independent printing devices which, for the purpose of description, I prefer to term address plates.

The object of my invention is to provlde a simple, durable and absolutely infallible device for moving the address plates intermittently from a stack or sup ly to printing position and thence into a rawer or receptacle provided for their storage.

One embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of a printing and addressing machine constructed in accordance with my invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 shows a bearing for the feeding member of the address plates; Fig. 4 is a front sectional elevation of a portion of the machine; Fig. 5 is a portion of Fig. 4 enlarged; Figs. 6 and 7 are side and front views of the mechanism associated with the moving of the address plates; Fig. 8 shows one of the numerous forms of address plates adaptable to the present machine.

In the present case, my invention is shown applied to a machine adapted to print on both sides of blanks, and in Fig. 1, 10 indicates a bed plate supporting oppositely disposed standards 11 provided with studs 12 upon which is fulcrumed a bifurcated lever 13 pivoted at the forward end to a platen holder 14, adjustably secured to which is a platen 15 provided with a printing form 16 (or a blank pad when addressing only is being done) maintained in parallel relation to of links 17 forming the bed plate by means with the lever 13 the well known parallel arm movement. The two arms of lever 13 are joined at the rear and terminate in a centrally disposed and rearwardly projecting lug pivoted to the upper end of a vertical connecting bar 18 having its lower end pivoted to the rear end of a cam-operated lever 19 pivoted at its forward end toa hangerbracket 20 and provided at its center with a cam roller 21 inserted in the cam groove of a face plate 22 secured to the main shaft 23 which is adapted to be rotated by an electric motor or other power. The cam lever 19 is constructed at its forward end with a downwardly projecting arm 19 which engages one arm of a bell crank lever 24: pivoted to bracket 20 and having the end of its other arm in contact with the lower end of a vertically reciprocable spring-depressed plunger 25 slidable in an extension of the bracket 20 and provided at its upper end with a platen 26 (also see Fig. 2) positioned beneath and adapted to raise the address plates 27 through an opening 10 in the bed plate after they are successively moved to printing position. By means of the arrangement shown and described it will be understood that when the shaft 23 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow, the printing form 16 will be lowered as the lower platen 26 carrying an address plate is being raised and the two thus brought together on opposite sides of the-object to be printed.

For the purpose of moving the address plates along the bed plate or along the runway of the bed plate to printing position, I provide a rotary screw 28 formed with a coarse pitch thread .and disposed beneath and along the front of the bed plateand parallel with the main shaft 23, and also parallel with the runway. This screw is journaled in bearings 29 and 30 secured to the bed plate, the bearing 30 being shown more clearly in Fig. 3. By reference to Fig. 2, it will be seen that the address plates are guided laterally during their adva cement by rib-like guide walls 10 and 10. w ich extend along the front of the bed plate and project downwardly therefrom. Secured to the underside of guide wall 10 is a strip of metal 31 which forms a support for one side of the address plates, and also serves to limit the drop of the platen 26. The opposite sides of the address plates are supported by and bear directly on the screw, the longitudinal axis of which is in line with the inner side of guide wall 10 as shown in the drawing. It will be seen that this arrangement provides a perfect runway for the address plates.

Referring to Fig. 8, it will be observed that one side of the address plates, the side which is supported by the screw, is formed with two notches 27*, which are spaced apart in conformity with the pitch of the screw thread, the notches being made a little wider and deeper than the thread to insure the address plates dropping freely onto the body of the screw. The length of the address plates and the pitch of the screw thread are so proportioned that the rear ends of the advancing address plates are also caused to bear against the thread (see Fig. 4); this feature not only provides the address plates with an additional bearing surface where engaged by the thread, but is quite essential when the address plates are to be discharged beyond the end of the screw and into the drawer or receptacle 32. Intermittent rotation of the screw is effected by means of the mechanism shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Secured to the left hand end of the screw, as viewed in Fig. 4, is a pinion 33 meshed with a gear 34 carrying pawls 35 adapted to be pressed yieldingly against the teeth of a ratchet wheel 36 fast to a pinion 37 both loosely mounted on a shaft 38 and independent of gear 34 when rotated in one direction, but adapted to move the gear when rotated in the other direction. Meshed with pinion 37 is a gear segment 39 pivoted at its lower end to a stud 40 secured to one of the supporting standards of the machine. Secured to the gear segment at a point about one-half the segment radius from the stud 40 is a pin 41 loosely mounted on which is one end of a connecting bar 42 having its opposite end pivoted to a crank pin 43 carried by a crank 44 keyed to the left hand end of the main shaft 23. It will now be understood that as the main shaft is rotated, the gear segment will be oscillated or rocked, and when rocked in the one direction, the teeth of the ratchet wheel will slip past the pawls and hence the gear 34 and the screw pinion 33 will not be moved. But when rocked in the other direction, the-teeth of the ratchet wheel will engage the pawls and thus rotate gear 34 and screw pinion 33 until the address plates are moved by the screw the required distance. In the present machine, the address plates are moved three inches at each step, and the pitch of the screw is one thread per inch. Therefore the gearing is so proportioned that one revolution of the main shaft gives three revolutions to the screw. It will be understood, however, that the pitch of the screw can be varied and various forms of threads used without departing from the scope of the invention. Fig. 5 shows clearly how the lowermost address plate is engaged by the screw thread and moved from underneath the stack. It will be observed that the end of the lowermost address plate has just fallen ofl, the one being moved toward printing position and onto the top of the thread, and that when the screw has completed its movement, the end of this address plate will have fallen onto the body of the screw and the end of the thread entered one of the notches in this address plate, which will be moved out one step at the next operation of the screw, and so continuing until the magazine 45 has been emptied. A pair of oppositely disposed retaining lugs 46 prevent any but the lowermost address plate being moved out from the magazine.

Adjacent the opposite end of the screw, the drawer 32 is inserted in the machine and a vertically movable shelf 47 which projects into the drawer is arranged to receive the address plates and to be lowered one step after each address plate is deposited thereon. Not forming a part of the invention, the devices controlling this shelf,

'as well as various other mechanisms and details of the machine, are not shown. An inking roller 48 is positioned between the magazine and printing position to ink the address plates as they are moved along the runway. An inking roller 49 (Fig. 1) is arranged to be moved across form 16 while at rest in its uppermost position. The mechanism for operating this inking roller is not shown, as my invention does not reside in the inking mechanism.

Now referring to Figs. 1 and 6, it will be observed that when the face plate cam 22 and the crank 44 are rotated in the direction indicated by the arrows, one half revolution from the position shown, the upper printing device and the lower printing device which stands in printing position will be brought together so as to simultaneously print on opposite sides of a blank, and are then again fully separated. During this half revolution, the screw will not be moved and the printing devices in the runway remain at rest in their separated positions. It will be observed also that during the other half revolution, the screw is rotated so as to move the printing devices one step along the runway, thus advancing another address plate from the magazine and another to printing position, and also advancing another into the drawer.

Without limiting myself to the exact construction and arrangement shown and described, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination in a printing machine, a bed provided with a runway for separate printing devices, a plate or platen having an opening above the runway, means for causing impressions to be taken from the pr nting devices through said opening 1n the the printing plate orplaten, and an intermittently moving rotary screw arranged along one side of the runway for supporting one side of the printing devices and for moving the latter along the runway, said runway having means supporting the opposite side of the printing devices.

2. In combination in a printing machine, a bed provided with a runway for separate printing devices, a plate or platen having an opening above the runway, means comprising a shaft having a. thread engaging the printing devices for intermittently movmechanism and havin ing the devices along the runway, and means for causing printing impressions to be taken from said printing devices onto the lower sides of blanks supported on said plate. or platen. I

3. In a printing machine, a magazine for supplying printing devices, a second maga-- zine for receiving the printing devices, a

runway extending betweenv the magazines, mechanism between the magazines for causing printing impressions to be taken from vthe printing devices, and means comprising a shaft extending on both sides of said which engages the printing devices for feeding the printing devices from the supplying magazine to the receiving magazine and'for causing thefeeding action to be stopped for an interval when each reaches printing position.

4. In combination in a printing machine,

printing device a bed having a runway for separate printing devices, lifting means for elevating the printing devices so that, printing impressionsmay be taken therefrom, and a rota feed shaft having a thread adapted to en-- gage the printing devices, said shaft serving 7 a feeding thread to move the printing devices along the runway to and thence beyond the lifting means.

5. In combination in a printing machine, a bed having a runway for separate rinting devices, lifting means for the printing devices arranged at printing position in said runway and adapted to raise the printing devices so that impressions may be taken therefrom, a rotary screw for moving the printing devices along the runway to printing position, and mechanism for intermittently'actuating said liftin means and for turning the screw between t e movements of said lifting means. a

In combination in a printing machine, a bed having a runway, a plurality of separate printing devices adapted to be moved along said runway to printing position, means for causing impressions to be taken from the printing devices when they reach printing position, and a rotary screw for moving the printing devices along the runway, said printing devices being provided with means adapted ,to be engaged by the thread of the screw for forming a driving engagement between the screw and printing devices.

7. In combination in a printing machine, a bed provided with a runway for separate printing devices, a rotary screw adapted to move the latter along the runway, the printing devices having notches adapted to receive the thread of the screw.

' In testimony whereof, I hereunto aflix my signature in the presence ofvtwo witnesses.

ALBERT -HORSWELL. 

